So the escort passed its MOT

In message , McKevvy writes

Not a bad price for an MOT either. I'm expecting to pay about £54 for mine next week, but I will get exhaust emission readings, tyre tread depth etc.

I'm also expecting a warning about splitting bushes on the Mondeo after the occasional familiar clunk when steering slowly round a car park.

Gordon H gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

£54 is the max they can charge. Anything less than that is a marketing incentive. The test is the same however much they charge. £54 for an MOT is cheaper than the labour (inc VAT) for the same amount of time would cost you in a lot of parts of the country.

In message , Adrian writes

I suppose so, even for a plumber! I'm talking about a main dealer. I go there even with a six year old car because they twice found broken coil springs on my previous Mk2 Mondeo of which I was unaware.

So? Our Previa of the same age cost nothing more than the £40 MOT test. I didn't need to do anything to it.

asahartz gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying:

So did SWMBO's £100 20yo 205, and her 26yo 2cv...

As I do all my own maintenance, I would take a failure as a personal criticism of my ability.

Chris

True, but TBH I didn't even find time for a pre-MOT check on the Previa this time!

There are a few things you can't easily check at home though, like emissions, and things you can't legislate for that happen en-route to the test station. My campervan shed a nut from a damper en route (on the way back it lost the bolt as well) and blew a bulb in the dash.

15-minute repair, but I did get a fail first time on that one, and I had checked everything before, even the damper nut as it's near where I jack it.

I live quite close to Lancashire Ambulance Authority (or whatever it's called these days) Headquarters so I go to their workshop for the MOT, where they charge £40. You know you're not going to get ripped off because they don't work on Joe Public's cars, so no incentive to fail it unnecessarily in order to get work.

I usually take my car into a discount MOT station. They charge £25. There's always a duff bulb to change**, which adds £10, but even so it's cheaper than a more reputable place.

** After the first time, I checked all the bulbs carefully before taking it in. I guess that £25 is not a realistic price here in London. :)

I didn't write that, but never mind...

How do you know the bulb was really duff? And how do you know they did all the checks thoroughly? ;-)